A Chinese state-linked mine dumped acidic waste into a Zambian river that supplies millions of people. The copper from mines like this feeds global supply chains, and China manufactures most of the batteries and solar panels that use it.
In February 2025 the tailings dam at Sino-Metals Leach, majority-owned by state-run CNMC, collapsed near Kitwe. Waste poured into the Kafue River system. Fish and birds died for about 100 km downstream, and a city of 700,000 temporarily lost its water.
Officials first reported roughly 50 million litres. A firm hired by Sino-Metals later estimated about 1.5 million tonnes of material containing cyanide and arsenic, at least 30 times the 50,000 tonnes the company had acknowledged. Sino-Metals disputes the higher figure.
Zambia halted operations, dumped hundreds of tonnes of lime into the river, and later took over the assessment at the companyโs expense. Downstream communities are suing. One claim seeks $20 million after tests showed pH around 1.8.
Tracked allegations against Chinese mining in Africa doubled to 100 cases in a year, with ten firms linked to nearly two-thirds of them. The minerals move into global supply chains. The contamination stays local.
A Chinese-owned mine dumped 50 million liters of toxic sludge into the river that supplies drinking water to 5 million Zambians.
Sino-Metals Leach's tailings dam breached in February 2025, flooding the Kafue River. Zambian communities are now suing the company.
It's not an isolated accident. Allegations of abuse linked to Chinese mining in Africa doubled in a single year, from 45 to 100. The Democratic Republic of Congo alone recorded 52 cases. Ten Chinese companies account for nearly two-thirds of every allegation tracked.
These are the mines feeding the batteries and solar panels sold as the clean energy future.
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